


Poor Puppet

by xxLunarChildexx



Series: Sefikura Week 2018 [2]
Category: Dissidia: Final Fantasy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-18
Updated: 2019-06-18
Packaged: 2020-05-14 03:06:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19264681
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xxLunarChildexx/pseuds/xxLunarChildexx
Summary: Cloud had tried to forget that night. He pushed it out of his mind. However, Sephiroth seems to have another idea on how to get under his skin and once again, takes control.





	Poor Puppet

**Author's Note:**

> Okay this is the second fic in the Sefikura Week I am posting. Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoy this one as I have not exactly done it for their pairing but it is going to become important in the future stories for the series.

Cloud knew something was wrong. He was practiced in his skills, especially in battle, he had trained for this for what seemed like his whole life. He made sure he was the best he could be at any moment in the field but right now, there was a slight lag to his movements.

It was as if someone was pulling on an invisible string, stopping him from performing to his full potential. It wasn’t the time for this, he needed to keep people safe, his friends safe and that was the only thing supposed to be on his mind but he couldn’t concentrate. He had no idea what was going on with him but whatever was happening he needed to snap out of it. Right now.

Kuja took a split second in his pause to lunge at Tidus, he swung his sword round ready to make the finishing blow but...everything stopped. 

His heart even stopped for a moment as well as his breathing. His vision filled with green and he watched as though he was stuck in his own mind as his hands went down slowly, dropping his sword. Kuja had stopped attacking and was now watching him closely before he smirked.

Cloud found his body standing to attention as it had once done when he had been a candidate for the SOLIDER program all those years ago. He tried to move his arms, his legs, send signals around his body from his brain but nothing was happening. In his head he was panicking as he knew now what was going on, he knew there was no getting out it now, he had tried so many times in the past to move, to stop, but there was no escape.

His head turned against his will, his eyes settling on Sephiroth across the battlefield. The silverette was smirking in triumph. Cloud didn’t understand, how could this happen here? He had thought, or perhaps hoped, that this couldn’t happen on this word. That it was going to be a time when he didn’t have to worry about Sephiroth’s hold on him but now he knew that had been a fantasy, a dream. The reality was that he would never be able to let his guard down without dire consequences and this was the result of his own stupidity.

Everything around him seemed to stop. He felt the eyes of his friends burning into him, the silence which had consumed the one chaotic battlefield was deafening. It was Tidus’s voice which called out to him but the words were like water through his mind, he heard them but didn’t understand them.

“You’re still mine. Even after all this time.” Sephiroth said and those words, to his body, was the words of someone he loved, someone he admired and knew would look after him. So while his mind was screaming at him, his heart beat faster and his lips pulled up into a smile. A smile which made him feel sick inside as he knew what it looked like, he had seen it in his reflection before.

Those green eyes got a look inside them...it reminded him of the night, what Sephiroth had done to him. He had refused to think about it since it happened and he had tried many times to wash the feeling of Sephiroth’s hands on him off since that night with little success. It haunted him day and night yet he had been able to keep it a secret from everyone in his group and the rest of Cosmos’s warriors. No one knew anything and he felt a thrill of fear at the thought that Sephiroth might do something here or make him do something which would get his secret out.

He felt someone’s arms come around him from behind and Sephiroth’s eyes narrowed before he found himself being dragged away.

The Warrior of Light rushed forward with Leon, attacking Sephiroth while he was still being dragged away, he was thankful Sephiroth hadn’t given him an order as he knew it would be to hurt someone or go to him. Either way, it wouldn’t be a good thing. Yet the fact that there was no order was worrying him at the same time.

“Cloud- alright?! Keep you- Cloud?!” It was Tidus’s voice talking to him and sometimes he heard the words and yet the whole message was muffled and out of his hearing. He saw the world become greener around the edges until it consumed his vision. He didn’t know where he was anymore or what was going on and could only pray that someone was keeping an eye on him, that his body wasn’t so out of his feeling and control that he was attacking his friends.

There was a snap. He blinked and the green faded until he could see someone in front of him, shadowed because of the fire crackling behind them. He wanted to glance around and see where he was but he couldn’t move his eyes, let alone his head.

Someone was next to him, running their fingers through his hair. His body then turned his head towards who was touching him and he saw Tidus next to him, looking confused and worried. Cloud wondered what his friend was thinking as he hadn’t told anyone about this, about the power Sephiroth held over him. He was regretting it now. It was a big mistake to keep silent. He knew that now but couldn’t say anything without Sephiroth’s permission and it made him feel sick.

“Cloud...are you there?” Tidus asked and Cloud’s body just continued to stare at him, the teen's face fell and his eyes watered with tears. Cloud felt his heart clench at the sight.

“Tidus, did he say anything about this to you?” The Warrior of Light asked and Tidus shook his head, “No. He never said anything. Why didn’t he tell me? Why didn’t he tell any one of us?”

“Perhaps there is a reason for his silence.” The Warrior of Light said and Tidus looked like he had swallowed something nasty before he said, “But...this is important information. He should have told us about this and then we could have stopped it from happening, we could have done...something.”

“Maybe not and that’s why he kept it secret.” Leon said and Tidus was looking more and more upset.

Cloud tried to force some control, he felt a little bit slip through but knew this was Sephiroth allowing it. It was terrifying to think that. He used his limited control to lift a hand to Tidus and put it on his shoulder. Tidus looked back to him with wide eyes and watched him carefully, Cloud understood why and he was taking his time in using the control he was allowed and shook his head before it snapped to the side.

“Cloud? Are you there? Are you trying to fight him?” Tidus asked, seeming excited and Cloud groaned inwardly as the control was ripped away from him and his body turned to the front and sat straight like the SOLDIER he had been trying to become.

“He had some control just then.” Leon said and Tidus let out a noise which was between excitement and pain. Tidus said, “So, he’s not completely lost right? I mean he could hear everything we’re saying he can respond if he fights enough to break through the control?”

“It does seem that way.” The Warrior of Light said and Cloud wondered how many of them were around and listening to this. Did they hate him now? Knowing that he was weak and easily turned into a controlled robot? He wondered about that and felt out to see where Sephiroth was in his mind. He searched for the familiar feeling and sure enough, it was there, like tar sticking in his mind and inside he felt a hand wrap around his throat and stroke his cheek.

Sephiroth was there. He was ready to fight for control if Cloud was.

“So what do we do?” Cecil asked and there were some footsteps coming up behind Cloud before Firion said, “We ask Cosmos for help.”

“Are you sure about this? It could weaken Cosmos even more and then the war would be over before the final battle starts.” Leon said and Firion asked, “Do you have any other ideas? I don’t see you coming up with any ideas.”

“We shall go to Cosmos and ask her for help.” The Warrior of Light said before an argument could break out and there was a time of silence before Tidus said, “We have to try anything Leon. We can’t just sit here and wait for things to become worse.”

“This is true. Before things get worse we shall talk to Cosmos and see if she has the strength to do anything for our friend.” The Warrior of Light said and everyone seemed to agree. That was one of the things about the Warrior of Light, he took control of the situation and that was the end of all arguments. It was interesting to Cloud to see someone with that much control over situations as he did, Cloud himself found it hard to take control of his team back on his homeworld, the Warrior of Light didn’t seem to have any problem.

Cloud’s head turned towards the Warrior of Light slowly, there was a collective moment of silence as everyone’s eyes turned to him. Tidus asked, “Cloud?”

A laugh started to rise inside him, spilling out of his lips. It wasn’t his laugh. It sounded nothing like him but rather a bad mimic or Sephiroth’s voice. There was more silence and the Warrior of Light just looked at him, watching him carefully. The laugh had been horrid and sounded jaded, enough that some of his friends let out a sound of disturbance.

Cloud’s head then turned away and down, his eyes closing. He could still hear everything around him but his vision was now filled with green against the darkness of his eyelids. It was filling his vision, pulsing and swirling.

“We need to move quickly.” The Warrior of Light said and then everything went silent...or was he just not hearing anymore? He wondered if Sephiroth was stopping him from hearing the conversations around him but he, himself, would be listening to everything. He remembers that happening before and it made him worried, Sephiroth had used the words spoken against his friends before and now he could do it again.

There was a pin drop sound before there was a woman’s voice talking to him, “Cloud, everything is alright.”

“Is it?” He asked and she hummed a laugh before saying, “There is trying times ahead for you but you can take control again. You have the strength to fight him. You have the will.”  
“I’m not strong enough.” Cloud said and she said, “Yes you are. There is not enough power in me to push him out but you have that power. You have the power to take control of your life, to become someone who can overcome their past and someone who has a bright future without worry of being controlled.”

“I doubt that.” Cloud huffed and she hummed before saying, “There is only one problem and that is not him. It is that you don’t believe in yourself.”

“I’ve let so many people die. I’ve let him destroy my life.” Cloud sighed and she said, “That’s exactly right. You have let him. You can take control back, you don’t have to let him do any more damage to your life and the people you love. As long as you don’t let him.”

“I let him...” Cloud said and thought about it. Had he let Sephiroth take control? Had he let the people close to him become the victims of the once great General? Did he have the strength to fight Sephiroth and make sure no one ever felt the sting of Masumane again? He didn’t know...but Cosmos was telling him that this was right. She was telling him he had the strength and the will.

Did he though? He knew he didn’t believe in himself and that was from the past, the past which haunted him every day, every night and every living moment of his life.

“Yes. You are the powerful one here, he is trying to tell you the opposite.” Cosmos said and Cloud frowned. How could he be the strong one? Sephiroth was so strong and unbeatable.  
“And yet you have defeated him time and time again.” Cosmos said and Cloud’s thoughts stopped completely for a moment. She was right. He had defeated Sephiroth. He had killed him even in his weakest moment without the SOLDIER enhancements.

“That’s right. You can do this Cloud.” Cosmos said and it sounded like she was smiling. Cloud blinked as the world refocused around him, he was lying down and looking up to the golden white light which was surrounding him. He blinked again and this time he felt some control but not enough to move a limb but enough that he could make his eyes move left to right and he saw his friends all around him.

“That is all I can do.” Cosmos’s voice rang out around them and she said, “It is all down to Cloud now. I have talked to him and he is starting to see his way out.”

“Thank you for your help.” The Warrior of Light said and Tidus popped his head up beside him and looked into his eyes. Cloud blinked and tried to open his mouth, his mouth opened but no sound came out. He couldn’t talk.

His hands moved up to his face without his mind sending the signals and were in front of him for a moment before they came down and pressed against his neck. He choked, feeling the air being squeezed out of him. Everyone’s eyes widened and they jumped over to him, trying to wrestle his hands away from his throat.

He heard Sephiroth chuckling in his mind and whispering but not loud enough for him to hear the words. He clenched his eyes shut and tried to take in some air as everyone tried to pry his hands off his neck but he was too strong for them.

Think! He needed to fight before he lost consciousness. He went into his mind and searched quickly for the link, the one which Sephiroth was using to do this to him and saw a bright green light inside his mind. He pushed himself towards it and felt out, inside was the feeling of satisfaction and possessiveness which he knew came from Sephiroth.

He pushed and pushed until he was standing before the light and saw hands coming out of the light before they took his wrists. Twisting his hands away he got them off before raising them and pushed his hands into the light, he imagined it dwindling and it, as if reacted, slowly ebbed down.

There was roaring as the light became almost blinding but Cloud kept his hands on it. Pressing and pressing until it was nothing more than as small as a materia. He heard Sephiroth speak through the light then, “You will never be rid of me Cloud. You are mine and always will be.”

“We’ll see.” Cloud said and pressed down until there was only darkness. He jolted back into control of his body and riped his hands off his neck. He coughed, leaning to the side, gasping for air.

“Cloud! Cloud? Are you okay?” Tidus asked and there were hands on his back as he wheezed and gasped. He turned onto his back and looked at the white light above him which was disappearing. He looked around to his friends who, once they saw his eyes, sighed in relief.

“Cloud, you’re okay. You’re okay.” Tidus said and Cloud nodded, feeling his throat with his fingers and knew it was bruised and that he probably wouldn’t be able to talk for the moment. The White Knight came forward and placed a hand on his shoulder, looking into his eyes, probably to be sure the control was gone before he smiled and said, “I am glad you are okay now friend.”

Cloud nodded and looked around to see them all watching him closely. He sat up and looked down, he would have to explain himself soon but he needed to be able to talk for that to happen. His head was pounding and his throat felt like it was on fire. It was a difficult position to be in and the others seemed to understand what was going on and moved away from him, each taking their role in setting up camp for the night.

He looked to Tidus who was by his side and got a small smile, shaky and worried but a smile none the less. He gave a small one of his own which seemed to be enough for the other blond who sighed in relief and patted him on the back. 

Tidus then sat down next to him and just watched the others work. Cloud owed them all an explanation. He knew he did but he was worried, what would they think of him when he opened up? Would they not trust him anymore? Would they keep their eyes on him during the night and every movement which might be out of sync with what they knew of him? He didn’t know but he knew it was going to be a while before they accepted this happened and trusted him completely again.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, note that the next story in the series might take a while longer. I have yet to write it yet so it will take a while to get it down and then edit.


End file.
